Larger Exhaust on a D24 NA?

[v8volvo]

Yeah, indeed on all that. In fact just in my own personal immediate experience, two relatives of mine in the Puget Sound area had cars stolen that way in the last few months. Both of them older Subarus and both with manual transmissions, which really surprised me. I had always heard the saying that the best antitheft system available is a manual transmission, especially in the modern age where some single digit % of drivers on the road know how to operate one. But apparently the crooks have figured out how to get around that.

First was a ~2002 WRX that had been owned by a relative up Avalon Way in W Seattle on the north end. Car he had had forever and competed with in rally events all over WA, OR, BC, so attached to it. Had upgraded engine and differentials, suspension, etc..... Stolen and then found a few days later down on W Marginal somewhere full of drug gear and was totaled as a biohazard, just like you say. He could have bought it back as a salvage and probably replaced the interior and revived it, but was sad enough about it that he decided to give up and move on.

Second was a ~1999 Outback owned by my brother-in-law in Bellingham. Disappeared overnight from the parking lot in his apartment complex right under bright lights! Found a few days later nearby in Fairhaven completely full of computers, cell phones, tools, AND lots of keys to other vehicles. Fortunately minimal damage to the car itself and he got it back.... And installed a secret fuel pump disable switch in a hard to find location.

Also had a friend get a nice motorcycle stolen in W Seattle in the past year, don't think that one was ever found. Plus as I recall you have had some bike thefts.

Part of what is most unfair about that trend is apparently the thieves have realized older vehicles are easiest to steal, plus they are usually not stealing for the car's value but rather simply as transportation to commit other crimes.... So their targets are often 20yo-plus Subarus and Hondas and the like. Thus the victims are less likely to be folks of means with newer vehicles that are probably covered by comprehensive insurance; instead more likely someone driving an older car with no theft insurance and not with enough cash lying around to easily absorb the loss of a major asset, plus their transportation to work, etc. This was certainly true in one of the two cases above.

It's a mean world eh?

Sorry for the thread hijack.

[ngoma]

Steering back towards OT-- We D24s don't have to worry about CC theft.

So there's that.

[v8volvo]

Yes. And with a long wait for glow plugs on a cold engine in the middle of the night, and very little ability to successfully start cold without the operator knowing to wait for them, hopefully the grand theft auto folks may suffer a little deterrence with our cars too. So we can hope that a D24 Volvo, especially one with a manual trans, is fairly low on the chances for being a crime target.

Though one thing I will say on the other hand is I am not sure the CC thieves are necessarily smart enough to know the difference between a cat and a muffler. They can look similar enough without knowledgeable inspection, especially in the dark etc. Plenty of cases I have heard of where folks have come out to discover a muffler sliced off, and sometimes the (harder to access/partially hidden) cats still fortunately sitting intact upstream. Karmic justice for the ignorant thief that wasted his time, and at least a muffler is cheaper to replace, though not any less hassle for the vehicle owner.

I actually knew a guy who had an early 2000s medium duty Isuzu flatbed truck that had the muffler stolen off of it while parked in a business lot two summers ago. An old diesel, so no catalyst, but it did sit nice and high off the ground and had a massive, massive muffler right there in plain view and easy access. The thief probably thought he was about to hit the jackpot when he stole that one.

[ngoma]

The CC thieves here seem to target Prius and other similar (hybrid?) as those CCs contain more of the valuable materials. (Probably because of the constant engine start/stop cycles reduce the temperatures the CC requires for efficiency?) Anyway, the low clearance doesn't seem to slow them down much. They travel with fancy floor jacks and weapons and a spotter, can get in and out in less than 3 minutes like NASCAR pit stop. The getaway vehicle has no plates/ dealer plates/ towel over the plates.

What happens if you drive your CC-less Land Rover to a state that requires CC?

Back to OT: I wonder if the Volvo front resonator acts as an expansion chamber? But in a different way that what we commonly see on 2-stroke dirt bikes. More like how some early large stationary generators ran their exhaust into a large brick-lined pit, then out via a smallish outlet pipe (to create a certain calculated amount of backpressure). Main idea is to dampen out the individual exhaust pulse spikes to a more consistent averaged flow to get by with a smaller diameter pipe. Although maybe the turbo modifies the exhaust enough into a more laminar flow anyway?

[v8volvo]

Interesting. That does add up, I have a few friends with Priuses in CA who have been hit for their catalysts.

I don't think there would be any issue driving my cat-deleted LR into a more restrictive state like WA/OR/CA. AFAIK there are no programs at least currently where they can conduct a roadside emission equipment inspection of a private personal vehicle owned out of state. Though I believe such programs do exist or are coming soon for commercial vehicles, at least in CA, even if they're registered elsewhere.

But if I wanted to register my non-compliant LR in WA for example, in a county with visual and/or emissions inspections, then I am sure I would have a problem. I think even a check engine light is enough to fail.

Makes sense on the expansion chamber concept. Combined with some baffles or packing for even better effect? Anything to take the rapping-type pulses out... Though as you say the turbo does a lot of that. Even a straight piped D24T is a little loud but not completely offensive at least IMHO, since the turbo kind of seems to round off and soften the sound. Whereas an unmuffled NA engine seems to have a lot more rasp/blat/snarl. Might not be that much louder really in terms of db, but the quality of the sound feels harder on the ears.